On this day exactly 50 years ago, protestors gathered at The Black Cat Tavern in the first documented LGBT civil rights demonstration in the U.S. February 11, 1967 often gets eclipsed by June 28, 1969, the day of the famous Stonewall riot in New York City, which is widely regarded as the beginning of the modern LGBT rights movement. But in truth the 1967 Black Cat protest is where it all began. Located on Sunset Boulevard, the modest Art Deco building that houses The Black Cat attracted a largely working class clientele and was nestled among a number of businesses friendly to gay men and lesbians. This is back in the days of a pre-hipster Silverlake, long before ordering artisanal cocktails and kale salad became de rigueur. Following a police raid, hundreds gathered outside the bar on February 11, 1967 in peaceful protest. To celebrate this milestone, L.A. Conservancy has commissioned a series of short films about The Black Cat and other lesser-known places that tell the stories of Los Angeles’ rich LGBTQ heritage. Despite the growing awareness of these places, many significant community anchors have been lost before their stories could be told. “Anything that happens that’s not documented we are destined to forget," says Alexei Romanoff, who helped organize the first P.R.I.D.E (Personal Rights In Defense and Education) demonstration. "If we stop telling our story, if we stop educating our own community, that’s when we make the big mistakes,” says Romanoff. “We are a tribe. By being close and united we don't give up hope and that’s what these films are teaching us.”